We’ve all been there – when we need to cook, we are hungry, or we want to order a takeout, but we have no idea what we should have. Routine can impact our appetite in a negative way. Fortunately, the sections below might help you spice up your next meal with a surprising combination. Keep reading to find inspiration and play more with your food!
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So, How Do You Respond to What Do I Want to Eat?
One of the trickiest questions we often ask ourselves…
Firstly, how about considering your general lifestyle and diet, and taking any specific requirements into account, if you have any. This is a good way to narrowing down your options.
For example, you can start by ruling out what you don’t feel like eating, then trim down the rest of the options.
If you are making this decision with another friend or family member, you can simply discuss between the two and one might find the right answer. In most cases, you will find out that you are both quite bored, not especially hungry.
If you crave some healthy meals, some recommended options are lean meats or fish, combined with a hearty salad made of what you have in your fridge.
Out of the fish options, salmon is an excellent source of Omega 3, but vegetarians can replace this with pumpkin seeds or walnuts. Combine these with salads, yogurt, or veggies, and you will get a healthy meal in no time!
In most cases, people do not know what they would like to eat when they are not so hungry. So, listen to your body. If you feel like having some snacks, there is a high chance that drinking some water will make it disappear. Dehydration is often interpreted as hunger.
Fun Things to Help You Make a Decision
If you are still unsure what you want to eat, you can check out the sections below. These are a few quick and easy methods to help you decide what you have for your next meal!
Drawing Lots
The easiest game you can play, and also engage others in the process, is the traditional method of writing down your options. It is not so relevant whether you are a home cook or you prefer deliveries since you can add any mix you like.
For people who prefer takeaway, simply write down all of your options in terms of restaurants and choose one at the end. If you already decided on the restaurant, you can choose their meals – you never know, maybe something you’ve never tried before will be the lucky draw!
Home cooks can make a combination of ingredients, baking methods, types of meats, bonus ingredients, and herbs. Each category should be placed in a separate bowl or container to make sure you do not pick two lots that don’t go together – such as “baking” and “steaming”. However, you can organize several drawing rounds for veggies or herbs.
Do not get discouraged if you get some weird combinations! You can simply search for a recipe that includes your chosen ingredients. This will help you break the routine and discover a potentially new favorite dish.
If you want to spice up, or even challenge your significant one, you can add food pairs instead of single ingredients. This will also shorten the drawing time considerably. If you play the game with someone else, you can either mix together all of your ideas, or you can exchange the tickets.
Roll the Dice
If you want a quicker method, or you do not have too many ingredients, rolling the dice is quite similar to the method above. Simply assign each number on the dice (1-6) a specific ingredient and cooking method. Roll the dice and see what you get!
Use a Mobile App
There are plenty of mobile apps that do not only come up with numerous recipes, but they may also help you decide what you are actually craving. For example, Tasty is a very popular choice and it is a major help as it makes you pick a few favorite options, such as healthy, cheese, avocado, Asian, BBQ, and lots more!
If you are not keen on getting your hands dirty on the next meal, you can simply use a mobile phone app. They come with numerous restaurants to choose from, depending on your location, and they might offer different dishes and cuisines to choose from.
For example, DoorDash does not only have a wide range of options, but you can also customize your order. If you do not have any idea what to eat, browsing their options might help you find something suitable.
Another popular option is GrubHub, and they take pride in their large pool of more than 50,000 restaurants across 1,100 cities. Whether you fancy a snack, a hot soup on a chilly day, or some sumptuous dessert, this is the easiest way of finding out what you want to eat from the comfort of your home.
Recipe Roulette
This method is ideal for home cooks who already have a rough idea of what they could cook from their ingredients, but are unsure what to pick. Similar to a regular roulette, replace each section with a recipe you could enjoy as your next meal. Let your luck decide the dish!
Color-based recipes
Another method to choose ingredients is based on their colors. For instance, you can go ahead and challenge yourself to make a recipe with each ingredient of a different color. To make it quite difficult, you can also pick only one (i.e. green, or yellow) and find only ingredients, herbs, and spices that match it.
Quick Recipe Ideas for Breakfast
Scrambled eggs with cream cheese are always a win! Eggs are extremely nutritious and the perfect food to start our day. If you love creamy and soft scrambled eggs, this recipe is a must. All you need to do is combine a bit of cream cheese with eggs, offering them a velvety texture. It takes only a few minutes, including to toast some fresh bread to go with it!
Egg Toast with Avocado is another option, especially if your diet is on the healthy side. Avocado provides plenty of healthy fats that will help you stay full for longer, and it surely doesn’t skip the flavor.
All you need to do is toast the bread, put the sliced avocado, and top the goodness with a beautifully poached egg. You can also change the avocado with any other veggies, add some bacon, or any other ingredients you enjoy.
For extra flavor, either drizzle with your favorite sauce or sprinkle some seasoning on top of the egg, including some salt and pepper.
Egg Nests with Bacon and Avocado is what you need on a chilly, grumpy morning. It is easy to prepare, but you need a cupcake tray. Cover the nests with any cheese you like and bake it for a few minutes until it sets.
Take the tray out, pour in the eggs, sprinkle delicious bacon bits, cheese, and any other herbs you like. This is one of the most delicious meals, and it goes well with freshly sliced avocado. It can also be a nutritious snack or brunch.
Egg, bacon, and cheddar bagel is another piece of heaven for gourmands. Even better, you can place it in the microwave, preparing a quick breakfast in no time.
Place bacon bits on the bottom of the bagel, place the egg on top, and season to your liking. Top the delicious bundle with cheese, microwave for 30 seconds, and enjoy! If you love the crunch, you can toast the bagel top before you assemble it.
Quick Recipe Ideas for Lunch
One of the quickest meals to wrap up is … a wrap! If you are a fan of Mexican cuisine, you can simply go for a burrito.
The main benefit of wraps is the fact that you can add any type of ingredients you have or you enjoy. It can be done with leftovers, but make sure you include beans and rice, otherwise, it is not a “burrito” anymore. Other quick and easy ingredients are spices, hot sauce, garlic, a squeeze of lime, and you’re good to go!
If you are not a fan of burritos, you can still enjoy a quick wrap. One of the favorites is the BLT sandwich, but leave the bread out and put the lettuce, bacon, and tomato in a wrap. For a little twist, make sure you warm up the wrap, it will become easier to use. This is also a great lunch to take to work with you.
Pizza wraps will be loved by the entire family for sure! They are also easy to make and can be customized with any ingredients you have. All you need is the tortilla, some tomato sauce, cheese, and all of your favorite toppings. You can enjoy the pizza wraps either cold or hot.
Other quick meal ideas include:
- Stir-fry with any ingredients you have available
- Chicken/pork/other protein stews
- Stuffed chicken breast with spinach, cream cheese, bacon, or any other ingredient
- Spaghetti with meatballs
- Chicken fajitas
- The classic calzone (see the pic below)
Quick Recipe Ideas for Dinner
One of the best comfort food recipes that can be quickly prepared is the one-pot meal. A great advantage is that you won’t need to spend much time cleaning or doing the dishes either!
It’s best to use a skillet, a Dutch Oven, or a sheet pan, depending on what you have available. There are numerous creative recipes that can make the entire family happy. For a twist, go for the “breakfast for dinner” method with this sheet pan vegetable hash with eggs. It is easy to make, and the delicious eggs are full of nutrients.
What about pasta? Although it is one of the easiest dishes we could ever make, preparing the sauce at home can be quite time-intensively. For a twist, you can prepare both the sauce and the pasta at the same time, in only one pot. You will find the quick instructions here.
Another great idea for those evenings when you do not know what to eat is French bread pizza! This is an excellent idea if you have a large family as everyone can design their own slices. All you need to do is grab the bread, cut it in half lengthwise, and add some sauce.
There is no need to go for the traditional tomato sauce – Ranch, BBQ, Mayo, or whatever you enjoy the most! Then, pile on all of your favorite toppings. You can make each slice differently, so each bite will bring some novelty. Pepperoni, chilies, spinach, onions, loads of cheese are only a few examples that will help you make the perfect, quick pizzas.
Finally, ramen is a favorite for many people, but have you tried upgrading it to the next level? With a few ingredients, you can turn instant ramen into a restaurant-level experience.
Cook the ramen according to the instructions on the pack, and then add all the upgrades. A quick and delicious idea is to top it up with one fried egg, as runny as you like, and some crispy, chopped bacon. For a fancy finish, you may add some chopped green onion. Add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy!
Summary
No matter what you choose, it is best to always use your imagination when you cook. However, sometimes, we are either busy, tired or both, some the question “What do I want to eat?” appears quite often in all families.
If you are in charge of the meals, the ideas above might help you get some diversity for the next meal! Having something new and unexpected can be quite exciting for the whole family, so why don’t you give it a try?
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